Just keep me company
by khollie
Summary: A hot day and an earthquake challenge the men of 51 during a rescue.


"Just Keep Me Company"   
_by _

_**Deanna Jordon**_

Johnny Gage looked up from the bed he was making and wiped the sweat out of his dark eyes. It was late summer in Los Angeles and the air conditioning system in the station had quit that morning. All of the men who made up the "A" shift of LACoFD 51, were hoping for easy runs that would take them out of the station. Even with the main bay doors open, the heat was oppressive.

Johnny gave the bunk he was making one final pat before bundling up the dirty linens for the laundry truck. He deposited his bundle by the back door before making his way to the day room. He grinned to himself as he spied his nemesis, Chet Kelly, cleaning the double wall ovens. Chet was perspiring heavily and muttering to himself. Johnny took pity on Chet and poured two tall glasses of ice water, placing one directly in the middle of Chet's back.

"Hey!" Chet raised up quickly, nearly bumping his head on the upper edge of the oven. "Gimme that!" Chet grabbed the offered glass and drank it down greedily. "John, my man, just for that, The Phantom owes you a water bomb or two." The Phantom was Chet's alter ego, the ultimate prankster. His favorite target was Johnny, knowing that John fell for everything, and more importantly, rarely held a grudge.

Johnny stood with his hands wide apart, "Take your best shot! I'm ready!"

His mischievous grin and inviting stance were an open invitation. Just at that moment, Cap walked into the room.

"Little hot for dancing isn't it there, pal?" Hank Stanley wasn't that much older than the men under him, but his gentle grace and wisdom made him a man to look up to. The five men in his command counted themselves lucky to be serving with him. Now Johnny turned to him with a look of mock concern on his face.

"Cap, I think Chet here's sick or something."

"What makes you say that?" Cap's tone was only half-joking.

"I just gave him permission to launch a water balloon at me, and he turned me down. Now, that tells me he's not feeling well," Johnny said with a grin.

"Now, Johnny, it's no fun to do while you're looking!" Chet shot back. He straightened up and shook his head, dislodging beads of sweat from his black curly hair. "There, that'll have to do ya'."

"Gross! Chet! Man! Cap, can't we do something about him?" Johnny dropped into one of the wooden chairs facing the main table, stretching out his long legs and resting his feet on the tabletop.

Cap pushed Johnny's feet off the table with one hand while eyeing the two firemen. "I'll make you a deal, John. I'll do something about Chet when you learn to keep your big feet off the table." Cap walked out of the room, leaving Chet to laugh at the outraged look on Johnny's face.

Johnny took another drink of his ice water then asked, "Where's everybody else?"

Chet closed the oven door and set his cleaning supplies on the counter.

"Mike and Marco are washing the engine, and Roy is filling out the log, I think." Chet came to sit down beside Johnny. "Man, I hope the repair guy comes soon. I can't take this heat much longer."

"Tell me about it. We haven't even had a run to get out of the station all day," John lamented.

"At least you get to go to Rampart, where there's air conditioning," Chet countered.

"True. You know it wasn't this bad yesterday. In fact, at the drive-in last night, it got kinda chilly," Johnny said, finishing off his water.

"Who'd you take to the drive-in?" Chet knew that John didn't go to a movie by himself. It gave him a real kick hearing about the ups and downs of Johnny's so-called love life.

"New girl I met. She moved into the building next to mine. She's new in town so I took her out to eat and then we went to the drive-in. We watched Jaws, that shark flick. Man, what a weird movie!"

"Only you would take a date to a horror flick, Gage!" Chet shook his head disgustedly as he refilled his water glass. "Chicks don't like that stuff!"

Johnny grinned as he leaned back and put his arms behind his head. "That depends, Chet, old pal. Chicks do like to be held and protected. And Gayle certainly fits in that category!" He grinned as he remembered the events of the previous evening.

Whatever Johnny was going to say next was lost in the ringing klaxon.

_Squad 51, child unconscious at the ball field, 468 west Burnside._

_Four-six-eight West Burnside. Time out 10:42._

Johnny was in the squad and waiting by the time Roy came out from the captain's office. Cap acknowledged the call, handed the address form to Roy, and stood in the doorway as the squad pulled into traffic. He felt almost envious as he watched them leave.

At the ball field, Roy and Johnny found a bunch of kids huddled around one of their playmates. "What happened?" Roy asked as he and Johnny began assessing the young girl.

One of the older boys answered. "We were just playing tag when she stopped and said she was really dizzy. Then she just fell down. I sent Kelsey to get our mom and to call you guys."

"You did good," Roy assured the boy. "What's her name?"

"Mandy Perkins. She's my little sister. My name's Curtis. Is she gonna be okay?"

"We hope so. How old is Mandy?" After Curtis told him, Roy turned back to Johnny who was finishing up his initial exam. "Whatcha got Johnny?"

"Possible heat exhaustion. Pulse is 120, respirations are 30 and shallow, she's sweating. Skin is clammy and cool." Johnny set up the orange bio-phone and contacted Rampart Hospital while Roy continued to assess the little girl.

"Mandy, can you hear me?" he asked.

"Yes," the little girl replied weakly. "My head hurts."

"I know, sweetheart. I think you just got a little too hot playing out here." While he was talking, Roy opened up a sterile sheet to cover her then began pouring a bottle of water over it to help cool the little girl down. He also took off her shoes and socks and raised her feet on the drug box. A woman came running up to him as he worked.

"Mandy! Are you okay?" The distraught woman turned her attention to Roy. "Is she okay?"

Johnny answered as he put down the receiver. "She's just got herself a case of heat exhaustion. We're gonna take her into Rampart Emergency just to make sure everything's all right." Johnny could hear the ambulance approaching and looked up to see it park next to the squad. Minutes later, the little girl was on her way to the hospital with Mom and Roy riding with her.

Johnny followed the ambulance to the hospital and backed into place beside it. He joined Roy inside as his partner turned the little girl's care over to Dr. Morton.

Taking advantage of the cool air inside the hospital, the two paramedics decided that the drug box needed to be inventoried and restocked. Neither paramedic was eager to return to the station. Besides, Roy reminded Johnny, they were just as available at the hospital. They had finished with the inventory and were enjoying a soda when Johnny stiffened slightly and cocked his head. He turned to his partner with a puzzled look on his face.

"Did you feel that?" he asked Roy.

"Feel what?" Roy asked. He looked around to see what Johnny might be referring to.

Before Johnny could answer again, a low rumble began under their feet, swelling until the roar made conversation impossible. The whole room began to shift and pitch, sending people to the floor, causing gurneys and chairs to shift around and objects to fall off counters and shelves. Roy was thrown into his partner as the two men crashed into the floor. Both scrambled to their feet to try and assist others as best they could in the continued shaking.

After several long minutes, the shaking and rumbling slowed then stopped.

Cries of pain and requests for assistance filled the hallway as the medical staff tried to pick themselves up and attend to the injured. Johnny had just picked up the drugbox when the handi-talki came to life.

_"Squad 51, what is your status?"_

"LA Squad 51, available at Rampart Hospital," Johnny answered as he looked down the hall to where Roy was helping a nurse pick up an elderly gentleman and put him in a wheelchair.

"Time to go, Roy!" Johnny called down the hall.

_"Squad 51, assist Engine 51, building collapse with persons trapped. 845 South Crenshaw. Eight four five South Crenshaw. Time out 11:25."_

"Squad 51 10-4," Johnny responded as he and Roy threaded their way out of the emergency department and out to the squad. They spent a few precious minutes checking out the squad to make sure it hadn't suffered any damage before responding to the call.

The run took nearly double the time it should have by the time Roy maneuvered the squad around and through the chaos in the streets. They had to pass two minor-looking traffic accidents, a dozen intersections where the lights were out, and scores of abandoned vehicles. Everywhere they looked, the paramedics could see people beginning to help where they could. It went against the grain for the men to pass up places where they could help, but the call for the building collapse had to take top priority. Later, they could help the next victims in line.

Pulling up behind the engine, Roy and Johnny jumped out and donned their turnout coats, leaving them unfastened for the moment. They looked at the pile of rubble in front of them. The building had once been a four-story apartment house. Now, it seemed that the top two floors had collapsed into the bottom two. Roy could make out the opening where the front door used to be. Noises of rubble being moved told him that at least part of their crew was already on the job. Johnny nudged him as he saw the captain standing by the engine.

They joined Cap at the engine and listened to the update as he called into dispatch on the handi-talkie. They waited patiently for him to finish.

"John, Roy, we have an unknown number of people trapped inside the building. There are four floors of apartments plus a basement where the laundry room is. Chet and Marco are trying to clear a path through the hall on the first floor with a bunch of local volunteers. Mike is getting the utilities shut off manually. I have three ambulances ordered, but it's gonna take a while for them to get here. We may or may not get an additional engine to help." Cap looked at the building again; his face screwed up in sympathy for what he was about to do. "John, get your gear on and see if you can squeeze through some of the downstairs windows into the ground floor apartments. Roy, you back him up. Let me know what you find."

"Right Cap." Without wasting words, John and Roy ran back to the squad for the ropes, K-12 cutting tool, prybar, flashlights, and safety belts.

Walking around to the west side of the building, they found a set of windows that were intact, raising their hopes that they would be able to get inside fairly easily. Johnny picked a window that was close to the ground and pointed it out to his partner. Roy nodded in silent agreement and together they raised it up.

Johnny fastened his coat, then attached the safety line around his waist.

Roy tied one end of an orange colored rope to him and handed him the prybar. "You got your handi-talkie?" he asked quietly.

"Got it. Give me a boost up, will ya?" Johnny asked. He and Roy exchanged a long look before Roy made a step with his hands and boosted the younger man through the window. He could hear the sound of something small crashing to the floor as John pulled his feet into the room. "You okay, Johnny?"

"I'm fine, but this plant has had it. This place looks pretty intact," Johnny responded. Now he called into the apartment, "Is anybody here? Fire department, is anyone in here?" Roy could hear Johnny moving rubble and throwing pieces of wood and plaster out of his way as he searched the apartment. "Nobody's here, Roy. I'm going to try to get into the hallway," Johnny called. "This ceiling looks pretty unstable. Stay outside until I call for you. I'd really like to know that someone call pull me out if this thing goes." Roy could hear the grin in his partner's tone. Johnny had earned his reputation as the most accident-prone firefighter in the county, even though he had high marks for taking the proper safety precautions.

Johnny found his way to the front door of the apartment after he had used the prybar to move a tall mound of broken lumber and plaster. The door itself had been broken in two and twisted off its hinges. In the hallway, the young paramedic could see where a section of the second floor support beams had broken and fallen apart. He raised his handi-talki to his lips.

"HT-51 to Engine 51. Cap, it looks like the main supports have buckled. This whole building could go. We're gonna need a construction crew in here to help shore things up. I'm going on to look for survivors."

"10-4, HT 51. Be advised that we have a construction crew on call who should be arriving in one hour." Cap's voice came over the radio. "Keep us informed about conditions inside the building."

"10-4, HT 51 out." Johnny pushed down the antennae and replaced the HT in his pocket. He turned toward the south end of the hall after seeing the mound of debris blocking the north end. He would need help to penetrate that mess. The next apartment down the hall was locked, it's door still on its hinges. Johnny used the prybar to open the door and searched the small area. He found no one, and marked a giant "X" on the door before shutting it. He reported back to Roy before heading for the final door.

This door was unlocked, opening at Johnny's determined shove. A quick search found the apartment empty. It was apparently unoccupied. Johnny went back out into the hall, and began inspecting the stairwell. Though the stairwell looked to be relatively free of debris, Johnny hesitated before going to the second floor. He pulled out his HT again. "Engine 51, HT 51. Cap, it looks like the south side hasn't been as heavily damaged. You might try moving some of the volunteers back here. I'm going to try to get to the second floor. The south stairwell looks pretty good."

"10-4, HT 51. Take a good look around, but be careful. I'm shifting Chet and a crew to the south. As soon as they're in place, I'll send Roy in to help you."

"Negative, Cap. Roy is on my lifeline. I'll join him outside as soon as I finish this sweep. We can join the search crew from there," Johnny answered.

"Understood, HT. Carry on." Cap lowered his HT as he stared at the building, almost as if he dared it to collapse any further. He knew that Johnny would take every possible precaution, but this was Johnny. Captain Stanley privately thought that John had a sign saying, "Accidents happen here", attached to his back every time he went into a dangerous situation.

Hopefully, this time, the universe would ignore the invitation.

John looked up the stairwell, trying to determine if the damaged wood would bear his weight long enough for him to look around the upper floor.

If there were any survivors up there, they would have to be dug out. He decided to chance it, knowing that he couldn't leave an injured person without trying to help. He placed one foot gingerly on the first step, holding his breath, and then slowly continued the climb. The stairs were littered with small pieces of debris and creaked with each step. His shaggy dark hair was drenched in sweat and the young paramedic opened his turn out coat in an effort to cool down.

Johnny reached the second floor landing and stopped. The twisted and broken mounds of wood and plaster blocked him from advancing any further. He raised the HT again and informed the captain that he couldn't advance. He waited for a response.

Outside the building, a young woman approached Captain Stanley.

"Excuse me. Are you in charge?" she asked nervously.

Cap turned to her and took in her rumpled appearance and red rimmed eyes.

"Yes, ma'am. Can I help you?" he raised the HT. "Stand by, John."

"My roommate, I can't find her. We were doing laundry in the basement and I went upstairs to get the bleach then the earthquake hit and I don't think she got out and I'm so afraid..." The young woman was forced to stop and take a breath. Cap put a hand on her shoulder to support her.

"Are you sure she didn't make it out?" he asked, scanning the crowd of workers and onlookers.

"I'm sure. I've been searching for her since you got here. I just know she's hurt. Is there any way you could find her?" Her soft brown eyes filled with more tears.

"We'll do our best. Why don't you just go over there and sit down. I'll get my men working on it as fast as we can." Cap promised her. He motioned for one of the women in the crowd of onlookers to come and take the upset tenant. That done, he spoke into his HT again.

"Gage, it looks like we have a possible victim in the basement. Since the lower floors are in better shape, can you try to get to the basement for a quick look?"

"I think so, Cap. Have Roy come in and hold my line from the top of the stairs."

"Will do, pal." Cap lowered the antenna before walking to the side of the building and apprising Roy of the situation. He helped the paramedic into the window and heard him and John discuss the best way to get into the basement laundry room.

John finally began to pick his way down the dusty staircase, holding the flashlight that the Cap had brought to him. He could hear the creaky sounds of settling dust and plaster and the shouts of workers trying to dig through the remains of the upper stories. He was nearly halfway down the stairs when he felt the rumbling of an aftershock. He braced himself as best he could against the wall as the shaking continued. Large pieces of sheetrock tumbled down from the ceiling, sending dust and debris over the hapless paramedic. He could hear Roy's normally calm voice frantically calling his name over the HT. As much as he wanted to assure his partner that he was still in one piece, Johnny knew that he needed both hands to hold onto his perch on the stairs. One misstep now would send him reeling down the stairs, and that would do no one any good. He couldn't afford to become a victim now, not with the lives of how many other people hanging in the balance. He just held on and prayed for the tremor to end.

Seconds later, the rumbling died down and Johnny was able to push himself away from the wall and kick the fallen pieces of sheetrock and lumber away from him. The air was full of dust, making breathing difficult, but at least he was in one piece. He grinned to himself as he found his HT. "HT 51 to Engine 51."

"Engine 51." Cap's voice sounded relieved. "You okay, Gage?"

"I'm ok, Cap. I'm nearly to the bottom now. The damage isn't as bad down here." Johnny kept up a running dialogue as he walked. "Here's the laundry room. Man, what a mess!" Johnny surveyed the room. Washing machines had toppled from their concrete bases, two vending machines had fallen flat, and the main water line had broken, sending gallons of water to cover the floor. "I've got her, Cap." John broke off contact and stuffed the HT into his pocket as he rushed to the still form lying on the ground.

The girl was pinned under one of the industrial size washers used for blankets and the like. It had come crashing down from its foot high concrete base, trapping the young woman's legs and pelvis under its weight.

Johnny began to assess her injuries, making a mental list of what he found. The girl was alive with a bump near her left temple region. Her left tib-fib was broken and he suspected a back injury due to the position of the washer. Straining mightily, he tried to lift the weight off of his patient.

The oversized piece of machinery refused to move, it's unwieldy shape and precarious position pinning its victim firmly to the floor. John gave up and tried to call Roy again. "Roy, I need a jack and some cribbage to lever this washer up. I can't move it without causing her more injury. I also need a C-collar and a backboard."

"Coming right up." Roy put down the antenna of his HT and ran to the window, looking for someone to gather the requested items for him. No one was in sight, so he climbed out and began to collect the rescue gear himself. The young woman who had alerted them to her friend's presence in the basement came over to offer a helping hand.

"I can carry the lighter things for you," she said, taking the collar and the backboard.

"Thanks..." Roy let his voice trail off.

"Deb. My friend's name is Tara. Did your partner find her?" Her brown eyes were full of questions.

"He found her. She's alive, but hurt. We're going to try to get her out before another tremor strikes." Roy led the way to the window and climbed back in, reaching out for the items Deb carried. "Why don't you go tell our Captain what's going on?" Roy instructed the girl. He could see that she needed to be busy to keep from worrying.

"I will. Be careful." Deb watched as the sandy-haired man disappeared back inside the unstable building. She turned to find the captain, and stopped, grabbing hold of the side of the building for support as a second aftershock rumbled underfoot.

In the basement, Johnny felt the beginnings of the second aftershock. He threw himself over his victim, covering her head to protect her from the falling lights and sheetrock from the ceiling. Seconds into the tremor, the basement shuddered as the roof above the stairwell and the laundry room came crashing down. John felt a searing pain in his left wrist as he tried to keep most of the new debris off the trapped woman. Ignoring the pain, Johnny kept his head down until the tremors eased off and silence reigned once more.

The lanky paramedic rolled off his patient and sat up, trying to get a good look at his altered surroundings. The doorway was completely blocked, and there were no windows in the small room. He cradled his broken wrist as he got to his feet and tried to move some of the pieces of lumber from the door. It was no use; the door, and possibly the entire stairwell, were blocked solid. He also found what was left of the HT, now a shattered piece of plastic and wire. With a groan, Johnny resumed his vigil with the trapped girl.

Outside the house, Roy helped Deb to her feet, shouting for help as he did.

Cap, Chet and Marco responded at a dead run.

"Roy! Are you okay?" Cap asked breathlessly.

"I'm okay. But Johnny, he was in the basement..." Roy couldn't finish, the look in his eyes told the captain exactly what he was feeling.

Stanley understood Roy's unspoken statement. He turned to Marco. "Take the young lady here and check her out over at the squad. Chet and Roy and I will try to get inside and see what the damage looks like."

Marco just nodded as he led Deb away, he knew that she needed to be protected from what lay inside the demolished building. Marco knew that it was doubtful that anyone had managed to survive the final collapse of the apartment building.

Shaking himself quickly, Cap raised his HT to his mouth. "LA, this is Engine 51. I have a Code I 1 at this location, paramedic trapped. Can you roll additional manpower to our location?"

_"Negative, Engine 51. Do your best."_

Cap hung his head before calling for his crew to grab entry tools and follow him to the window John had used earlier.

Before Cap and the others could get organized enough to get into the building, the promised construction crew pulled up. The foreman hurried over to meet Cap. "Sorry it took us so long. The whole city is a mess."

Now he stuck out his hand. "I'm Dean Peters. What have we got here?"

Cap took the offered hand and quickly introduced himself, Roy, and Chet.

"We have at least 2 people trapped in the basement, a young woman and one of my paramedics. We've found three others alive in the rubble and dug out two fatalities. This whole thing is getting too unstable to dig in. We need you and your men to help us shore it up enough to get our people out of the basement."

Peters stepped back to take in the structure. "Give me a few minutes to see what we've got here. Why don't you guys take a break and get some water. This heat is murderous and I can tell that none of you have taken a break."

With a kindly smile, he moved off with the other five guys in his crew, pointing out details and talking in a low voice.

Stanley and the others started back to the squad to get a few minutes rest while the construction crew worked out a solution. They had only taken a few steps when Chet realized that Roy wasn't moving. He hurried back to the shaken paramedic.

"Roy, come on. You've got to get some liquids down you. This heat is gonna kill ya' if ya' don't." Chet took hold of Roy's arm and tugged.

"He's down there, Chet, hurt." Roy's eyes glazed over as he looked at the twisted pile of debris. "I couldn't do anything."

Chet stepped in front of his friend, blocking his sight of the demolished building. "You tried, Roy. Johnny was the one who volunteered to go inside and look around. He is trusting you to get him out. That's why he insisted you stay outside. You held his line, he knows that you'll be in to get him. I think that's why he lets himself take the risks. He knows that you'll be there to pull him out."

Roy stared at Chet hard for a moment, trying to convince himself that Chet was wrong, that Johnny didn't lean on his partner that hard. In the end, he relaxed. Realizing that Chet was right -- Johnny took the risks he did knowing that Roy would be there to back him up. He smiled wanly at his friend then led the way back to the engine and the cool drinks that awaited them there.

Cap stood quickly from his perch on the bumper of the engine when he saw Peters and his crew approaching.

"Whaddya think?" Stanley asked, nodding his head at the former building.

"I think we can do it. Instead of tunneling down through the debris, we'll dig out the basement wall and go through that. We can shore that up a whole lot easier than we can anything else." Peters ran his hand over his sweaty forehead. "I've got a backhoe on the way. It should be here in about 10 minutes. While we're waiting on it, show me exactly where the room is. Do you have a copy of the plans?"

"No plans, but I know where my man and the victim are." Cap led the way around to the east basement wall. "According to what Gage said, the laundry room is right through here." He pointed out the general area to the construction foreman.

"Okay. We'll dig straight down till we hit the original footing, then we can bust through the wall. It should take about half an hour." Peters waved the others away as he and his crew began to mark out the site for the backhoe.

The rest of the crew returned to the grim task of going through the rubble to search for survivors, or the bodies of those who didn't survive. None of them wanted to be the one who might find that Johnny had joined the ranks of those who didn't survive.

A soft moan from his victim roused Johnny from the light doze he had fallen into. He leaned over her, gently pushing her hair out of her eyes as he spoke to her. "Can you hear me? My name's John, I'm a paramedic with the fire department. Can you tell me your name?"

"Tara." Her voice was low and weak. "What happened, why can't I move?" Her tone began to rise in panic.

"Settle down. Just take it easy, Tara," Johnny soothed. "There was an earthquake and you got caught in it. You have a washing machine on your back that's holding you down." He shifted to a new position, laying down beside her so he could look into her eyes. "I just need to check you out a bit." Working awkwardly, he managed to re-assess her injuries and was surprised that the worst seemed to be the broken leg and the bump on her head. The washer wasn't causing pain and she had feeling in both of her legs. As he returned to her side, his injured wrist brushed the washer, forcing a hiss of pain through his clenched teeth.

"Are you okay?" Tara asked worriedly, twisting her body around to get a good look at her rescuer.

"I'm fine," he lied, working hard to hide his pain.

"Your arm is hurt, isn't it?"

"My wrist is broken. The ceiling gave way and fell on us."

"We're trapped down here, aren't we?" Tara's green eyes bored into John's brown ones.

"Yes," the lanky paramedic confirmed, "but my partner and the rest of our crew are up there and they'll get us out. We just have to be patient and wait." John continued to prowl around the room, looking for weak spots.

He retrieved a warm towel out of one of the dryers and went back to sit beside Tara, reaching out to take her pulse again.

"Do they know where we are?" Tara asked, the earlier panic gone, replaced by a calm feeling of dread.

"They do. I was talking to Roy just before the last tremor hit, so he'll be able to find us." John reached out to snag a short piece of timber and turned to Tara. "I need you to help me here. I need to splint my wrist and I can't do it one-handed. Think you can give me a hand?"

"You'll have to lay down here for me to reach, but I think I can do it."

Tara took the towel and began to tear it into strips. "Remind me that I owe Deb a new towel," she joked, blinking her eyes to rid herself of a passing dizzy spell.

Instantly, Johnny was checking her pulse and eyes again. "If you're not up to this, we won't do it."

"If you feel better, then you can take better care of me, right?" Tara asked, craning her head up to look at the paramedic.

"True, but still, I don't..." He was cut off.

"Maybe all we can do right now is keep each other company, but I can splint your wrist and you can keep me awake." Tara picked up the strips and motioned for John to lay down beside her. "Besides, I took this really neat first aid class with some friends a couple of months ago. Wait till I tell them I got to patch up a paramedic." A mischievous twinkle glinted in her eye.

"Glad to volunteer, I think." His grin matched hers as he watched her carefully splint his arm with only a word or two from him. When she was done, he examined the work with a critical eye. "Well done. You must have passed the class."

"I did okay." Tara ran her hand over her face, wiping off the sweat that had accumulated there. "You wouldn't happen to have an air conditioner in your pocket would ya'?"

"I wish. There's no air to circulate down here and that water from the busted main line is raising the humidity. Are there any more towels in that dryer?"

"Sure. I put in a few with the jeans that Deb washed. Why?" Tara was puzzled.

John got up and made his way over to the dryer, pulling out two large bath towels. "This water is all over the place. We can keep cool by getting the towels wet and laying them on us. I don't know how much longer we'll have to wait, so we might as well be comfortable." Setting actions to words, John dipped both towels in the pooled water. He laid one over Tara's back and neck before removing his turn out coat and wrapping the second one around the back of his neck. "Better?" he asked the girl.

"A little. Those vending machines had pop in them. Are they broken enough for you to get into?" Tara asked hopefully.

"Naw, the doors are meant to stay on. I looked earlier." He looked longingly at the machines. "That was a good thought though."

"I had to try. I'm getting really sleepy now. Think I'll take a nap."

Tara said as she yawned and put her head down on her arms.

"No, Tara listen to me. I need you to stay awake for me here." John reached over and gently pulled on her arm. "I know you're tired and hurting, but I need you to stay awake so I can see how you are doing." John stroked her head as he talked to her softly, wondering to himself just how long the two of them could hold out in the intense heat gathering in the small room.

Peters walked over to where Cap was helping Chet and Marco move another piece of debris. "Can I talk to you for a minute?" The two men moved out of the way before Peters spoke up. "I just got a call on the radio from the bulldozer crew. The truck can't get here through traffic. The only thing we can do at this point is dig it out by hand."

Cap pursed his lips before answering. "Okay. My men will start on the digging if you outline the spot for us. Have your men take over the operations up here."

Peters nodded. "Got it. I've got the site all marked out. You'll have to dig down at least seven feet deep and four or five feet out from the wall.

Fortunately, the soil is mostly dry sand so digging shouldn't be too difficult."

"We can handle it. Thanks." Cap walked off, yelling for the rest of 51's crew to follow him. Once back at the engine, he explained the situation as his men drank greedily. He could see the weariness in their faces as well as their concern for their crewmate.

"Cap," Mike spoke up, "why can't we use the Kennedy probe to see if they are still alive?"

"We can and will Mike, just as soon as we dig down enough to punch a hole in the basement wall. Right now we need to concentrate on digging the soil away from the outside wall." Cap looked at them intently, waiting for any other questions that might come up. When none were forthcoming, he clapped his hands together. "Ok gang, let's get to it. We'll dig as a group first, for the initial excavation, then take it in shifts. We've got daylight for at least the next seven hours so let's make the most of it." Grabbing a shovel, the tall captain led the way to the excavation site.

Roy stopped at the squad long enough to check the condition of his latest patient before grabbing the shovel from out of the squad. A steady stream of patients, mostly injuries among the rescue crews, had kept him busy. The young woman, Deb, had pitched in to help, proving to be a competent assistant. She had confided to him that she was a certified first-aid/CPR instructor and he felt comfortable leaving her in charge of the injured.

He reached the others just as they decided on the best way to dig down to the wall. The decision had been made to start from five feet away and dig down before progressing inwards to the wall. No one wanted to chance getting trapped if another aftershock decided to rock the area.

An hour later, they were forced to stop and rest. The afternoon sun was beating down mercilessly and they were exhausted. Cap called a rest break and watched as his crew nearly fell down in the only shade available, a lone oak tree growing at the corner of the apartment building. Deb brought over more water and then left, sensing that the men needed to be together now.

After a silent fifteen minutes, Roy staggered to his feet and grabbed a shovel, followed closely by Chet. Chet had long ago abandoned his turnout coat, as had all the men, and now he unbuttoned the top few buttons of his sweat-soaked uniform shirt. Together, he and Roy dug slow and steady, increasing the depth of the hole until the top of the concrete block basement appeared. Roy looked up to yell at the captain, then noticed Mike standing in front of him with a sledgehammer. While Roy and Chet watched, Mike punched a hole in the top of the wall, just below the frame edge of the first floor support beam.

While Mike was doing that, Marco set about assembling the Kennedy probe.

The pole and its attached microphone barely reached into the selected area.

Marco was hoping that it would find signs of Johnny's life, as it had the two other survivors. All of the crew of 51 held their breath as Marco listened.

Gradually, a smile began to creep over his Hispanic features. "He's alive!" Marco withdrew the pole and turned to face the others. "I heard him talking to the girl. They're hurt, but alive!"

A chorus of cheers erupted around, forcing the men to realize that others had drawn close to them. Most of the people working on the building knew there was a fireman trapped in the basement. Now, knowing he was alive gave the group new hope of finding other survivors in the wreckage of the building. Roy and Chet resumed their digging with a fresh burst of hope and energy.

"Tara, hey Tara..." John called softly.

"I'm up, I'm up," Tara replied tiredly. "What is it? Did I fall asleep again?"

"You tried to. I know you are hot and tired, but I really need you to stay focused for me here. My partner is out there, doing everything he can to get us out of here." Johnny placed his good hand on her shoulder.

"What if they can't get through? We'll die down here, won't we?" Tara's voice held the hint of a sob.

"Don't even think like that. I know Roy. He hates to lose. He and rest of the guys have a plan and are doing their best. We just have to hold on till they get here." John rearranged the wet towel on her neck.

"I don't feel good. I'm so thirsty," Tara said weakly.

"Me too, Tara, me too. Just as soon..." his voice trailed off. "Did you hear that?" He got to his feet carefully and looked around the room. "I thought I heard something. Is there another room besides this one?"

"Yes, there's a storage room. The door to it is just down the hall. You didn't go far enough down the hall to see it." Tara pointed in the direction of the ruined staircase.

"They must be digging in there. We'll be out of here soon." Johnny walked to the far wall and started banging on it with his good hand. "Roy! Roy, are you out there? We're in the next room. The girl needs help, now! Can you hear me, Roy?" He stopped and listened, but answer was forthcoming. He returned to Tara's side and sat down heavily. Perspiration ran freely down his face and back. "If they're using the probe, they heard me. I don't think it will be long now."

"I hope so." Tara's voice was weak and sleepy. "I'm so tired, John."

"Me too, hon, me too,." was the only answer that he could offer.

By taking turns with each other and some of the local volunteers, the rest of the wall was uncovered in just under two hours. The men from the construction crew, having done what they could to shore up the remaining debris, came over to begin the work of demolishing the wall without collapsing it. Instead of a sledgehammer, a concrete saw was used to cut a hole through the concrete blocks and the iron rebar reinforcements. As soon as the hole was finished, Roy was the first one into the basement.

"They're not here! We missed them." Roy emerged from the room. "This looks like a storage area. We heard them down here, so there must be another room along this wall."

Dean Peters stood at the top of the hole and visually assessed the situation. "Look at the wall on the north side. Is it block or wood?"

Roy ducked back inside to check. "It's block, just like the outside wall but the door is on the west wall. There's probably a connecting hallway that leads down to the entrance to the laundry room."

"We don't want to start digging down there, might bring more of this building down. I'll come down and use the saw on that block wall, same as we did out here. Change places with me." Dean scrambled down the ladder that had been placed in the hole, then held the ladder so Roy could go back up.

"This won't take long. I'll call you as soon as I'm through."

After Roy had reached the top, one of the construction crew handed the concrete saw down to Peters. He took it and disappeared into the storage room.

Cap placed a hand on Roy's shoulder. "Roy, I have Marco and Chet bringing the stokes and your equipment. Go on over and give them a hand. You know what you are going to need." His tone made it more of an order than a suggestion.

With a resigned sigh, the weary paramedic jogged over to the squad to start collecting the equipment he thought he would need. While Chet and Marco gathered the stokes and a stretcher, Roy laid out the treatment area for two victims. The trauma box with the splints and neck collars, he took with him back to the excavation site. While waiting for word that the hole was complete, he took a moment to look around the site. In the several hours that had passed, the building had been searched, shored up to prevent another collapse, people had been relocated to emergency shelters, and a news crew was filming various aspects of the disaster. Roy grinned and shook his head, trust the news to find the worst to report.

Abruptly, the droning of the concrete saw quit, and a yell issued from the building. "I'm through! I can see them!"

Instantly, the firemen and the paramedic rushed down the ladder into the newly created entrance. They found Peters standing by the four foot by four foot hole that he had cut out. "It looks pretty clear. I'll stand by just in case, but it's all yours now." With a grin, the construction foreman stepped back out of the way of the determined firemen.

Roy fitted himself through the hole first, carrying the Trauma box. He easily spotted his partner and the trapped girl on the far side of the laundry room. Leading the way, he picked out a route that was fairly free of debris and knelt down by his partner while Marco began checking the trapped girl.

"Johnny? Johnny can you hear me?" Roy asked softly.

"Roy? Is that you?" Johnny opened his eyes and peered at his friend.

"Time to go, huh?"

"Yea partner, it's time to go."

Two weeks later a party was held at Roy and Joanne's house. The crew of Station 51 was there, as was the construction crew, and Tara and Deb. The July heat had broken enough for the group to enjoy a backyard barbecue and an assortment of games. John and Tara, who had suffered only a broken leg, teamed up against Roy and Joanne, and Deb and Marco for a round of lawn croquet. In spite of his broken wrist, and her broken leg, John and Tara won, to Roy's loud protests of cheating. Johnny just grinned widely before escorting Tara to the deck and the lounge chairs there.

"I really want to thank you, Johnny, for inviting Deb and I today" Tara began, accepting the soda the young paramedic handed her.

"I'm glad you could come. Have you found a new place to live?"

"Yes, a nice new building with an apartment on the ground floor. You'll have to come to dinner one night and see it," she said shyly.

"I'd love to." Johnny smiled at her as he took a sip of his own drink.

"There's something else I've been wanting to tell you." Tara looked down at her drink. "Thank you."

"Thank you?"

"For coming after me, knowing that the building wasn't safe. You could have just as easily have said no and waited till the building was removed before finding me. You risked your life to save me." Her voice was low and slow.

John reached over and tilted her head up. "I knew you were down there. We don't leave anyone behind. I'm just sorry I couldn't have done more for you."

"You did enough, Johnny. You were there for me. I wasn't alone. Thank you." Tara took another drink of her root beer, studying the paramedic's face.

Johnny thought about what she had said. He knew that he wasn't capable of leaving someone behind, but rarely was it put into so many words. He had never sat down and made the conscious decision to risk his life, time and time again, for others. That was part of what made him a great paramedic.

Since no answer seemed necessary, he just let a satisfied grin settle on his face, scooted his chair closer to Tara's, and watched the rest of his friends enjoy the afternoon sun, content in the knowledge that he was not alone in his determination to help others.

**©January, 2000**


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